Finding a girl who supposedly stole airships for a living was easy until I realized that Aetheria is home to roughly ten thousand people who could plausibly steal an airship.
The market district stretched long and wide, filled with mechanics, smugglers, merchants, mercenaries, and enough shady characters to make me question every life choice that led me here.
"Vexa Rynn," I muttered.
Nyx walked beside me, her hood drawn low over her face.
"Don’t say her name so loudly."
"Why not?"
"Because she’s paranoid."
Cyra glanced around.
"She has enemies."
I sighed. "Of course she does."
We pushed deeper into the market district, the smells changing with every step.
Roasting meat mixed with the acrid reek of burning oil and some other chemical odor that made my eyes water.
Mechanical signs hovered overhead, flashing garishly.
AETHERCORE REPAIR - CHEAPEST IN THE LOWER DISTRICT!
CYBERNETIC LIMBS - LEGAL AND ILLEGAL MODELS AVAILABLE!
AIRSHIP PARTS - NO QUESTIONS ASKED!
I stared at the last sign. "No questions asked"
Nyx shrugged. "Usually a good sign."
"Why?"
"Means they don’t care where the parts came from."
"Which is never a good sign."
We finally arrived at a particularly busy mechanic shop.
Unlike the others, there was no sign hanging from the door.
Instead, dozens of mechanical parts hung from the ceiling, forming a maze of metal and wires.
Silas had told us Vexa would be here.
The trick was finding her.
I scanned the crowd. "Do you have any idea what she looks like?"
Nyx shook her head. "Silas said she’d be wearing red."
I glanced around. There were at least a dozen people in various shades of red. "Helpful."
Cyra gestured toward the back of the shop. "There."
A young woman crouched beside an enormous mechanical engine, her short black hair falling over her copper goggles.
Several streaks of crimson color her bangs, and she wore a dark coat lined with metal plating.
A mechanical tail of sorts trailed from the back of her belt, ending in a spherical device that pulsed with blue light.
She looked intensely focused on the engine before her.
"Vexa Rynn," I said as I approached.
She spun around and hurled a wrench at my head.
I ducked, and the tool flew past me, embedding itself in the wall behind me.
"That’s rude," I muttered as she stood. Vexa’s eyes were an unusual shade of green, mechanical lenses rotating within them.
"Who are you?"
"Riven."
"Don’t know you."
"I know."
"Then why are you saying my name?"
"Someone named Silas sent us."
Her face changed, surprise blooming across her features. "Silas?"
I nodded. She grabbed another wrench from the table. I raised my hands in a placating gesture.
"Please, don’t hurt me. Did he tell you where I was?"
"No."
"Did he tell you what I do?"
"Yes."
"What?"
"You steal airships."
She regarded me for a moment before smiling. "Good."
I didn’t like the sound of that. "Good?"
"You’re honest," Vexa replied as she stood and walked toward me.
"Most people who come looking for me are liars."
Nyx cleared her throat. "We need a pilot."
Vexa looked over Nyx’s shoulder, her eyes widening as they took in the figure behind her.
"That’s new."
Nyx stiffened. "Don’t."
Vexa raised her hands in mock surrender. "Easy. I like it." She turned back to me. "Who are you people?"
"Travelers."
Vexa chuckled. "That’s the worst excuse I’ve heard all day."
I sighed. "We’re trying to get to the Skyport."
Her smile faded. "Why?"
"Because we need a ship."
"That costs money."
"We don’t have enough."
"Then you’re not getting one." I shot a look at Nyx.
She shot a look back.
Cyra muttered something about perhaps leaving.
Vexa laughed. "I like her."
She gestured at Cyra. "She has common sense."
"Thank you," Cyra said.
I ignored them. "We can pay you something else."
Vexa crossed her arms over her chest. "Like what?"
I glanced around the shop, taking in the engines, weapons, and machines.
My heart pounded as the System appeared before my eyes.
[Mechanical entity detected.]
[Target: Stormrunner Engine.]
[Condition: 31%.]
[Upgrade Potential: Extremely High.]
I turned back to Vexa. "That."
She stepped in front of the engine, blocking my view. "No."
I blinked. "What?"
"I know what you’re trying to do."
"No, I - You weren’t even looking at it!"
"Can I fix it?"Upgrade it."
"No."
"Make it better."
"No."
"Make it faster."
Vexa stopped and studied me.
I returned the favor.
Finally, she turned back to the engine. "Prove it."
I stepped forward.
Nyx caught my arm again. "Riven."
"What?" I turned to her. "You have no Upgrade Energy."
That was true. I had all but none left, and the System was not lying now.
[Upgrade Energy: 0%]
I stared at Vexa. "Small problem."
She merely laughed. "I figured as much."
"But I can still diagnose it."
"Alright," Vexa replied, stepping aside.
I crouched beside the massive engine, my fingers tightening around the metal.
It reminded me of something I used to repair all the time before this mess began.
I traced the edges of the various broken parts, inspecting the cracks and dents.
Nothing was beyond repair.
Not entirely.
Not without the System.
[Stormrunner Engine.]
[Condition: 31%.]
[Primary issue: Aether compression instability.]
[Secondary issue: Turbine damage.]
[Potential output: 164%.]
I ran my fingers over the engine, and a thin line of blue light traced the connections between the parts.
I immediately understood the layout, the intricacies of the mechanism.
"This engine isn’t broken."
Vexa blinked. "What?"
"It’s badly tuned." I pointed at the Aether chamber.
"Your compression ratio is too high. That’s causing your pressure valve to open too early."
She looked offended. "It is not."
"It is." I stood.
"You, however, are very good at hiding it."
Her expression softened as she crouched beside me. "Are you saying the pressure valve’s timing is off?"
"Exactly."
She stared at me for a long moment before following my line of sight. "And this is why your turbine’s blades are cracking."
I smiled. "That’s right." Vexa looked stunned. "How did you know?"
I shrugged. "System."
She narrowed her eyes at me. "Whatever that means."
Vexa stood and studied the engine. "Fix the timing on the pressure valve and replace three of the turbine’s blades."
I stared at her. "You want me to make it faster?"
"Not really." She crossed her arms. "Just fix the things that are wrong with it."
I grinned. "Alright then." She looked surprised. "And you’ll let me fix it?"
"I suppose." Vexa’s smile was slow, calculating. "You’re interesting." I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not.
"So you’ll help us?"
"No." My grin vanished.
"But I will make you an offer."
"What kind of offer?"
Vexa tilted her head. "You fix my engine."
She gestured at me. "And I’ll fly you to the Skyport."
I considered her offer. It was a good one. "Deal."
"Except there is one small problem." She gestured upward, and I followed her line of sight. Above the market district, the rooftops of the city, and the distant, wispy clouds, a single airship floated.
Its engines glowed a dull red, and the ship’s body was a sleek black.
"Your engine is currently in the private hangar of the Iron Jackals."
Nyx’s face fell. "A gang."
Vexa nodded. "Very violent gang."
Cyra sighed. "Of course."
I turned back to Vexa. "So you stole their engine?"
"No." She smiled. "I stole the ship."
I raised an eyebrow. "Where is it?"
She gestured upward again.
I turned to look out the shop’s opening and stared at the distant airship. "You stole an airship and left the engine?"
"Long story."
"Do we have to get it back?"
"Unfortunately yes."
"From the Iron Jackals?"
"Unfortunately yes."
"How many are there?"
Vexa paused for a moment. "About thirty."
I turned back to her in shock. "Thirty?"
She shrugged. "Maybe forty."
Nyx sighed.
Cyra buried her face in her hands.
I stared at the ship above the city, then at my empty Upgrade Energy, then at the three women standing around me. "Very well."
Vexa raised an eyebrow. "Fine."
I smiled. "We’re stealing an engine."
The System popped up before my eyes.
[New Main Objective Updated.]
[Retrieve the Stormrunner Engine.]
[Objective Reward: 20 Upgrade Energy.]
[Additional Reward: Unlock Crew Member - Vexa Rynn.]
I stared at the message.
A nice reward.
Twenty Upgrade Energy.
A new crew member.
And our first real chance at getting a ship.
I smiled.
For some reason, it wasn’t as scary as I thought it should be.
It almost felt like the beginning of an adventure.
Nyx leveled her revolver at the distant airship. Cyra’s eyes glowed with blue light, and Vexa heftied a wrench over her shoulder.
I checked my Aether Revolver.
"Let’s go steal an engine."
Vexa grinned.
"Now you’re speaking my language."